The only thing that might change is that we'll go to a 9 game schedule to give more content to the SEC Network. ESPN and Slive will put the full court press on that.

What you are failing to understand is that it is not only Bama/UT that wants to play each other, but so does AU/UGA (for the same reason Bama & UT does), Ole Miss/Vandy & MSU/UK (because they like to play the easier conference game and OM/Vandy claim a rivalry), and Mizzou/Arky (because they want to try and start up a rivalry). LSU, A&M, and USCe might be able to swing UF over to their corner, but UF has always claimed to love their yearly game against LSU (unlike LSU).

The only places where people are complaining about the premenant cross-divisional games is on LSU and A&M sites (and possibly USCe sites, but I don't frequent those so I don't know how often they talk about it). Everyone else wants to keep them for their own reasons.

[This message has been edited by Bamatab (edited 10/31/2013 6:33a).]

BamaTab:

Do the math for us:

Last year Florida play at A&M. If nothing changes, when will A&M fans get to see Florida at Kyle again?

This year Alabama played at Lexington. If nothing changes, when will they go back?

This is why it's stupid.

9 game conference schedule needs to happen.

Sam,

The teams I mentioned above prefer to play their respective cross-divisional teams every year, as opposed to playing the other cross-divisional teams every 4 or 5 years instead of every six or eight (or whatever the number is). That is not stupid, that is just what those teams prefer.

BamaTab

I asked you a simple question. Are you incapable of answering it?

How do we not get arky, considering the SWC affiliation?

Sam,

You want me to tell you Bama would be going back to Lexington ever 12 years? But when we go to 9 games it'll be every 6 years (and we could play them every 3 years if we don't play back to back home & away games).

But I'm trying to figure out what all of that has to do with LSU wanting the majority of the SEC schools to drop their preference for LSU's preference just because LSU is too intimidated to play UF.

Bammertab, if you're such a big flag bearer, wouldn't you rather make a statement and play UGa and UF instead of playing pathetic UTK every year? After all, you goons always used to make a point that AU was your biggest rival. That is, until you starting beating up on UT. Now all of a sudden we are as big as AU! LOL!

Horn,

You of all people should know that the Bama/UT rivalry is one of streaks. Just like Neyland had over Bryant, Bryant had two long streaks against UT, then Bama and UT traded 7 game win streaks from the 80s through mid to late 2000s, and now we are back to a Bama win streak.

And I'm having a hard time believing you're a true Vol fan. Every Vol I've ever met has considered Bama as their biggest rival. And most have faith enough to think they will not stay down forever. You on the other hand seem to have given up on the future of your football program.

You obviously have not met many UT fans. The younger fans consider UF the biggest rival. I personally hate VU the most.

I AM a true Vol fan with a degree from there. The fact I care about the well-being of this program is why I don't think we should play a non-divisional rival every year. A&M sacrificed the Texas rivalry - a rivalry TEN TIMES BIGGER than UT-UA, so why can't we just punt this joke of a rivalry? Besides, I don't want to pump money into your POS town every other year. I hate Tuscaloosa. Heck, I'd rather go to Starkville.

And I haven't given up on our football program's future, but our future will never include a NT again. We got lucky in the 90s when Bama, UGa, and even Carolina had POS coaches. Once they hired good ones, it was lights out for us.
I expect 8 to 9-win seasons though due to the amount of money we have poured into football. It's disappointing we don't concentrate on basketball more, because Tennessee basketball talent is incredible in Memphis in Nashville and pretty good in Chattanooga. We need to focus on what's best for us, and that would be roundball, not some gridiron pipe dream.

LOL...that might just be the most pitiful thing I've heard from a Vol fan ina long time. I guess y'all should just go ahead and shutdown your football program...SMH

At least our coach isn't a disgraceful human being. And we don't consider ourselves pathetic just because we suck in football - which says a lot about your retarded fan base.Sometimes I think God let's y'all have football success because you are such a pathetic tragedy in everything else. and again - I am excited about going to CS for a game - it ain't fair we have to wait to go to cool places and instead play in your she-it hole, all in the name of preserving a non-rivalry.

Oh don't worry there horn, we also have a better academic institution than you guys (and that is saying something since we are mid-tier in the SEC).

Oh, you mean the good ol' US News and World Report ranking? The one that ranks colleges according to their prowess in "research (which basically means the school with the most number of professors writing worthless papers while the TAs instruct the class)? Whatever. UT is 10 times better than that snobby, frat drunk tank in Tuscaloser. Besides, you will find out next year how much smarter our players are than the illiterate idiots you have playing for your "school."

[This message has been edited by hornhatinvol (edited 11/4/2013 5:24p).]

There are television executives who want more games between the teams from states with more televisions, TX A&M/FL, TX A&M/GA, TX A&M/TN, TX A&M/MO.

There are coaches who are new to the SEC in states that rely heavily on out of state recruits (MO, KY, TN) who want and in all fairness deserve equal exposure in Texas and access to Texas recruits but do not want the negative impact on bowl eligibility of a 9th conference game. They see what has happened to Nebraska since they lost that exposure and access.

This ain’t your grandpa’s SEC anymore. Brace yourselves Bamers.


[This message has been edited by TGCGT (edited 11/4/2013 6:31p).]

Lol...oooook

Good to see some smack talk coming out! Also, it's great that it's from fans of real CFB programs like UT, Bama, etc. instead of septic muck like Baylor, Tech, TCU, et. al.

For the record, I'm unsure whether perm opponents are good or bad. It probably would have kept the Big12 intact had OU and Neb been able to play each other annually.




I bleed Maroon and I wipe burnt orange.

quote:

---

LOL...that might just be the most pitiful thing I've heard from a Vol fan ina long time. I guess y'all should just go ahead and shutdown your football program...SMH

---

Horn is too young to remember 1997, 2001, 2004, and 2007 seasons. If anything we've been unlucky. Wish I had a 5 year limit on memory. 97 was the worst. 2007 pretty bad as well, particularly Fulmers 'ah shucks' attitude.

hornhatinvol makes a lot of sense. Good posts.

Rivalries like UT-Bama and AU-GA should be preserved if at all possible. Sure I would love to play the East teams more often but lets not make the same mistake the Big 12 made when they broke up OU-Nebraska.Besides in 10 years if the current schedule format is still the same I have a feeling South Carolina will be a much easier game than UT.

Neither one of those games come close to having the same national relevance that OU-Nebraska had.

Just move Auburn to the East already where they belong and want to be, and let Mizzou go West.

[This message has been edited by cc10106 (edited 11/15/2013 1:49a).]

http://theroommateswitch.wordpress.com/

I don't know if there is a NCAA rule that would prohibit this from happening, but this seems like a great solution to the sec scheduling problem

cc10106,

How does moving Auburn east solve the problem? You preserve Auburn-Georgia by getting rid of Auburn-Bama?

The only real solution with a 14 team, 8 game league schedule is to do some bizarro division rotation or "pod" type scenario. You basically start with the 3 or 4 programs each team feels they should play every year then figure out a way to rotate the rest.

Third Saturday in October, right???

Better check the 2014 schedule - something had changed........

Third Saturday in October, right???

Better check the 2014 schedule - something had changed........

Would you want to deny this fan an opportunity to go to Knoxville?



It's like eminent domain, folks. They're gonna go where they're gonna go. Might as well let'em.

I do not recall seeing the idea posted before
but
why not let them play it outside of conference play?
that could be done with ALL cross divisional games. if your game is not a regularly scheduled game in a standard 6/2 format, then for that year you play it as a non-con game that has no bearing on conference standings
that way you keep your "rivalry" and everyone else gets to keep sane schedules

ross skillman '70

Whether the setup makes sense or not, I'm ok with it being determined by a simple majority vote.

Tennessee will rise again. Bama will go thru down cycles again.

A&M just needs to maintain focus on our own progress, our own goals, & keep building its national brand.

I'm not so sure Tennessee will rise again, at least not to where they were in the 90s. They have a ton of recruiting disadvantages plus the relative rise of vandy. This is going to be an extremely lopsided 'rivalry' until Saban retires.